been huntin by myself last few years due to loosing my hunting pard in 01, lately my kids have been callin on the old man seeing if I can point them in the right direction, I guess I'm not that square after all, beings they ain't had much luck with out the old man taggin along...LOL...

DallanC wrote:

Do you hunt alone for big game? If not what is your normal party size? How long of hunts do you usually do alone? Single days? Multiple? -DallanC

Note: I reviewed what I wrote and confess to going on a rant. But, I feel better for posting it. Thanks.

Several have mentioned the advantages of hunting with others and I agree with the points they have made. Safety is a primary issue and comes into play if a hunter is disabled. In the main, most of my hunts are scheduled around friends and family that have drawn the same hunt or are willing to go along for the experience of just getting out or, in some areas, to varmint call whilst I pursue my quarry. Still, there are times when I hunt alone.

Schedules do not always allow companions and, sometimes, the tag I have drawn requires above normal effot that isn't always shared with someone that has no tag. My last Coues deer tag was for the late hunt and I used the Christmas to New Years time slot to chase these wiley and elusive bucks. From where I parked the truck, a six hour, 3,500', full pack climb into some lofty mountain peaks in the Chiracahuas would test the dedication of any hunter. At least, it tested mine. This is rough country, enough so that the Apaches avoided capture for a long time by hiding there. There are no roads and only a few very faint trails. Climb. Climb and climb some more with everything needed for four days of hunting in the pack (Coues hunting can get rather obsessive.). In the time I was there I saw no other hunters.

Late on day three I got a good buck; it scored 112. The next morning I began the hike back, the boned meat adding more weight than the consumed food and water, but, for the most part, in was downhill. I got back by mid-afternoon, exhausted and with sore knees, yet, very pleased with the effort. Still, in retrospect, there were many chances for injury or something as disabling as a sprained ankle. Caution is a constant companion in these circumstances.

For me, the memories of that hunt will not fade. I suspect it is the reward we claim for taking some measure of what we perceive as risk. Yet, in a society that has made "safety" a mantra, my little effort pales compared to the challenges and the hardships that early settlers faced on a daily basis.

Reading journals of Alaskan hunters and miners that often faced life/death situations underscores how tough some of our forefathers were in the hope for a better tomorrow. In a society that has become indulged and softened by the luxuries we are blessed to have, the legendary feats of but a hundred or so years ago seem distant and alien. To many, they are incomprehesible.

We have insulated ourselves remotely from the basic processes of living and surviving, and having the skills to do so, that absurd concepts have crept into our vocabulary and our laws if not our national personality. Perhaps, it is the bane of high density population that we tolerated such absurdity and give podium to the likes of a Jane Fonda, a John Kerry, a Charles Schumer, a Ted Kennedy, a Jessie Jackson and a Hillary Clinton while tolerating legalized abortion, homosexuality, secularism, PETA and antigun legislation, to mention only a few.

I have strayed from the subject, but, to me there is a connection. Whether hunting with others or hunting alone, the act of hunting is a basic and critically important instinct. Legislation or popular sentiment that tries to discourage hunting or, by association, firearms, isn't just an opposite opinion, its outright unnatural. It isn't just liberal, its leftist. IMO, such efforts are an affront and an insult and should be challenged at every opportunity. Hunting and guns aren't privileges, they are rights and introducing this heritage to our children is a prime responsibility. Opposing those that would limit them is our challenge.

After reading the posts, it seems we have different definitions of hunting alone. By some definitions I have always hunted alone. By others, I have rarely hunted alone. I guess we each have an idea of what alone really means. My definition is I leave the house alone, arrive alone, hunt alone and return alone. That type of hunt for me, anymore, rarely, if ever happens. However when I was in my 20s, I would take off into the mountains, swamps, etc., and be gone for a week without a thought about it.

Today, I try to make sure that I go to the start point with at least another hunter and we go our own way after that, keeping in contact by radio or cel phone, as needed. But then again, I am not 20 any more and after a couple of heart surgery episodes and a back surgery, I try to make sure the ants or dingos do not get me...
Ed

There are times when I actually enjoy hunting alone. The piece and quiet and being able to do as you please are nice sometimes.

My "hunting alone" is other people in camp and each one striking out on their own. I have never advicated going hunting completley alone, although I have done it and may do it again, The advantage of having company in camp is all have a general idea where everyone is so if one does not return by evening we know what we will be hunting the next morning...And aproximately where.

Bushmaster wrote:

My "hunting alone" is other people in camp and each one striking out on their own. The advantage of having company in camp is all have a general idea where everyone is so if one does not return by evening we know what we will be hunting the next morning...And aproximately where.

What Bushy says here makes alot of good sense.

I can't remember the last time I went on a hunt alone. I have certainly wandered around alone, but have always had a mate or two out there somewheres as well.....and we all know where each area is we are working. If we feel it necessary, we will even carry a marked map showing our individual boundaries. Contact with either VHF or cell phone is also a good idea methinks.

Nothing worse than scouring the bush for a mate who is lost.....especially if you have no idea where and when he went. This is even worse if you don't realise that he has been missing for a few days or more because he went hunting alone. I've had to assist in a couple of searches over the years and it isn't pleasant. Revisit and read Dallan's post on the GRIZZLY VS HUNTER... NO WINNER.....says it all.

Most importantly; at the end of the day once the firearms are secured and the beers come out, a most important part of the hunt starts. Camaraderie, telling lies about the "45x76" buck you just couldn't quite get a shot at, bragging about the 1000 yd head shot on the PD you managed, , telling the odd ribald joke and generally enjoying the company of your mates whilst sitting around the fire. Ya can't get any better than that; you can't do it if you are on your own.

Cheers, Vince

One of my favorite passtimes around the fire. And I'm a damn good lie.....Aah... story teller.

45X76 buck, you say...Do tell...I'll raise one to that...

I believe it.............

I don't hunt alone very often but I do at times and enjoy it.

I do alot of day hunts alone. I enjoy it. Seems like one focuses alot more when you are alone.--tr

DallanC wrote:

Interesting. I'm headed out in a bit over a week for upto a 11 day trip, solo. I'm going well prepared but my wife is more than a tad apprehensive about it. There is no way we could get a sitter for that long for our kid to allow her to come with and I refuse to have him along because no-one can sleep at night etc etc. Its just a major pain and with this being a very coveted hunting tag I drew, I didnt want to screw it up due to lack of sleep and whatnot. I'm going to hunt it hard and see how it pans out. I'm probably going a bit overboard on the preparedness meter but hey the reason you bring along all that extra gear is so you wont need it... if you dont have something, THATS when you need it most. Plus I believe cellphones work out there on the mt ridges (which is ironic as its theoretically the most remote area in the continental USA, the Utah BookCliffs). Should prove to be an interesting week and a half. -DallanC

You can never be over prepared but you can be under prepared. Don't cut yourself short.

If a thread gets moved here then it's pretty much lost for any future reading.

Is there any way the forum programming could be set to prevent new posts in threads that haven't seen a reply in say, five years?

Failing that, split off the offending post, then move the "new" thread here.

I have hunted alone for the last few years.
I brought with me GPS Spot to call for help just in case.
Not fool proof but give a bit more peace of mind.

I use InReach. Besides GPS, you can text, your mates can ping your location to see where you are, and they have an SOS feature to call for help. I used it on a wilderness sheep hunt in the Guadalupe Mountains where I went days without seeing anyone else.

Another App that a mate uses is Find Friends. I have it on my iphone, but I don't have anybody connected into it as yet. He uses it with his hunting buddy and it shows exactly where they are on a map real time.

Unfortunately, the area I hunt doesn't have any cell phone access, so using a phone is out of the question. I'm looking at buying a couple of small handheld UHF walkie talkies for safety.

InReach uses the Iridium Satellite Constellation. No cell service required.